Publication forthcoming:
* “Migration at Extremes”. Keynote address at the conference Colonial and Wartime Migration, 1815-1918, Amiens, France, 12-14 September, 2018.
* “Migrants in Crisis in Nineteenth-Century Britain.” In The Oxford Handbook of Migration Crises, edited by Cecilia Manjvar, Marie Ruiz and Immanuel Ness. New York: Oxford University Press, 2019.
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S W R de A Samarasinghe, courtesy of Colombo Telegraph, 16 November 2018, where the title is “Crisis of Governance: Equity and Welfare Implications” .… with the emphasis in red being Sam’s worl and that in other colours being the Editor, Thuppahi’s incusions
Sri Lanka’s current crisis of governance threatens to undermine the country’s democratic tradition of having periodic free and fair elections to choose a government under the provisions of the constitution. I highlight the term “provisions of the constitution” because elections that are held by rulers in an arbitrary manner in violation of the spirit if not the letter of the constitution to suit their own convenience are not democratic. From that perspective, both major political parties in Sri Lanka, UNP and the SLFP (now SLPP), have not been democratic on occasion in the past.
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Pushpendra Albe, in Cricket Age, 10 November 2018 where the title is “Murali Helps All Communities Alike, So Who Can Complain?”
As a cricketer, Muttiah Muralitharan has been regarded as the greatest spinnerof all time. As a cricketer, his journey to become the living legend of the game by overcoming all the hurdles and controversies, was nothing sort of a spectacular fairy tale.
However, there is another side of Murali, which has turned out equally admirable. As a philanthropist, through his NGO Foundation Of Goodness (FOG), Murali have brought change in the millions of the Sri Lankans, irrespective of their caste, background or religion. Murali’s journey as a philanthropist in last one decade has transformed Sri Lanka’s poor communities and has opened the whole new world for the younger generations. With his manager and founder trustee of FOG Kushil Gunasekera, Murali has become a symbol of peace, harmony and has uplifted millions of lives. Those Tamil leaders, who are questioning Murali’s contribution to the community, must see the ground reality of bowling legend philanthropic achievements, before pointing fingers towards him!
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Gerald H. Peiris, being an article serialized recently in The Island, under the following heading “Alleged ‘Land Grabbing’ by the Security Forces in Sri Lanka” … with highlighting emphasis being impositions by The Editor, Thuppahi
In view of the significance accorded in recent public debate and discussion on the subject of ‘land grabbing’ in several conflict-ridden countries of the Third World it is necessary to devote attention to a series of facts that are of crucial relevance to a balanced understanding of the related situation in Sri Lanka.
Figure 1 – post-conflict releases of land from the Palali HSZ
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John Richardson. reproducing a chapter in Arun Gandhi, Ed., W orld Without Violence (1993) which is entitled “The Seventh Blunder: Politics without Principle. Lessons from Sri Lanka” ++
FR Jayasuriya fasting unto death in support of SINHALA ONLY … 24 May 1956
The world began to experience a wave of political change in 1989. Entrenched authoritarian regimes in many nations have crumbled in the face of popular dissatisfaction with repressive policies that failed to deliver on promises of economic opportunity. Many nations are now experimenting with the forms of democracy: popular elections to choose leaders, accountability of leaders to elected parliaments, freedom of expression and freedom to compete for power within organized political parties.[i]
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Stanley Samarasinghe aka “Sam”
ONE = MEMO Sent to The Editor, Thuppahi
Unfortunately the present government has discredited the concept of Good Governance and many voters have become cynical. But Sri Lanka has no alternative but to think afresh and make an effort to convince at least 50%+1 of the voters that Good Governance must be given another chance. If not we will elect another set of corrupt politicians. My argument is that this time the younger politicians must take the lead and not Civil Society leaders. For sure Rev. Maduluwave Sobitha played a decisive role in 2015. But civil society leaders have no power to deliver. Recall that before his death Rev. Sobitha himself expressed his frustration a few months after the new government was elected.
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the Matara VHE …
and the Jaffna VHE 
The Foundation of Goodness’ 10th Village Heartbeat Empowerment (VHE) Centre opened its doors on Sunday 1st July, 2018. Situated in Bindunuwewa- Bandarawela District, this marks the Foundations’ first VHE Centre in the central region of the island, following the establishment of three Centres in the South, three in the East and three more in the North, in steady progression, with plans to establish 15 more in addition to our flagship model in Seenigama (The MCC Centre of Excellence and Sports Academy) the one of a kind holistic rural community initiative encompassing 30 empowerment activity sectors wish serve 15,000 beneficiaries from 300+ villages monthly, free of cost.
Mahinda Wijesinghe in Sunday Island, 14 October 2018
I had the privilege of attending Vidya Jyothi, Professor E.O.E. Pereira’s 111th annual memorial birth anniversary lecture on September 13, 2018, conducted by the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka, at the Wimalasurendra Auditorium. There was a packed audience. Not being an engineer of any sort I had to cadge an invitation for this event though I did have a fleeting acquaintance in my youth with this nonpareil legend. It was an experience I still carry with fond memories. However I was fortunate enough to play cricket for our College with two of his sons, namely Lorenz and his younger brother Bryan. Their father and mother, Mavis, never did miss any matches their sons were playing in. I treasure those friendships. Alan, the youngest of the brothers left for Australia before I made his acquaintance.
Sarah Chatta in Daily News, 9 October 2018, where the chosen title reads thus “Faces of the war” …Stories from both sides of the barbed wire tell of the pain of ordinary lives
German native Nicolas Lamade leaned over and expressed his amazement. The auditorium of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute was packed with a mixed audience: army generals, clergymen, politicians, activists, journalists, and lawyers. Lamade, Deputy Program Director of the German reconciliation project GIZ, first came to Sri Lanka in the early 2000s when he said no one dared to question official versions of wartime events in public, let alone speak out about misconceptions of those events. A decade later, he marvelled at how far Sri Lanka had come.
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Sam Perry, courtesy of ESPNcricinfo, 4 January 2017, where the title is “The man behind Sydney’s cricket-gear wonderland”
He was a kid from Sri Lanka who came to Australia with no more than A$200 in his pocket and a child in his hands. But decades later, the name Harry Solomons is synonymous with the Disneyland of cricket gear in Australia: Kingsgrove Sports Centre.
Harry Solomons: “Man, woman or child, they all want a bat with thick edges and a thicker profile” Sam Perry
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thuppahi
